Fool's Gold

360 cubic feet — amount of waste rock removed in order to produce enough gold to make an average pair of gold wedding bands

31 — number of fatalities in gold mines in the U.S. from 1994 to 1998, an average of 1 death per 54.2 metric tons of gold

1,634 — number of fatalities in gold mines in South Africa from 1994 to 1998, an average of 1 death per 1.6 metric tons of gold

$430 million — 1999 profits of Anglogold Limited, the largest gold mining company in the world, which produces nearly half of South Africa’s gold

$3.8 million — contributions by mining companies and political action committees to federal candidates and political parties in the U.S. during the 1997-1998 election cycle

$0.8 million — contributions by all environmental advocacy organizations and political action committees to federal candidates and political parties in the U.S. during the 1997-1998 election cycle

105 A.D. — year when the Roman Empire annexed the “Golden Quadrilateral” region of Romania, securing a valuable gold supply

1998 A.D. — year when the post-Communist Romanian government passed legislation allowing foreign investment in its mining industries, attracting investments from Australian, Canadian, British, and U.S. firms

13 — the number of documented pollution spills from Romanian mines since 1998